


Silent Partners

by notmydayjob



Category: Brooklyn Nine-Nine (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/M, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-05-28
Updated: 2015-06-08
Packaged: 2018-04-01 15:53:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,584
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4025854
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/notmydayjob/pseuds/notmydayjob
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>For the past few weeks, some moron had been calling in requesting ridiculous songs or asking for inappropriate love advice.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Very loosely based on the tumblr prompt  
> "i run the night slot on campus radio and some jackass keeps calling in to insult my music taste and request high school musical songs instead”  
> I don't know anything about being a dj so I just guessed and made some stuff up. ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯

"Coming up is another round of only the best adult contemporary. You're listening to WBNY 99.1 FM."

Amy switched off her mic and took a sip from her university mug. Her supervisor gave her a thumbs up signaling she could take a break and exit the booth.

"Nice work, Santiago. After the break, you'll be taking requests."

Amy's shoulders slumped slightly. This was her least favorite part of the job. It never failed, for the past few weeks some moron had been calling in requesting ridiculous songs or asking for inappropriate love advice. Which Amy did _not_ do. He called from a different number every time and was very good at using fake voices. Amy new it was the same guy every time because before she would politely hang up he would say in his apparent normal voice. "Dj it up! _Santiago stylez_."

Also his elaborate made up names were usually a big clue.

She wasn't sure if he was mocking her or was some sort of weird stalker fan. Either way, no one knew who he was and he was getting on her last nerves. Her roommate Kylie had suggested she quit if it bothered her so much. But really it wasn't his calls that annoyed her, mostly anyway. His request were funny, sometimes. And the plethora of characters he came up with were pretty entertaining for the usually boring late night disc jockeying. She had even gained more listeners who were there just for the new comedy hour.

What bothered her the most was that she couldn't figure out who it was. Amy _hated_ not being able to figure something out.

The university's newspaper had done a segment on the mysterious prankster. A couple of people had come forward claiming the title. But Amy and a few of her dedicated listeners knew they were all fakes. The real culprit was still out there. Borrowing cell phones, hiding in phone booths.

Tonight was no different. As soon as she had settled back in her chair, adjusted her headphones, and announced she would be taking callers her set buzzed in. Amy mentally braced herself.

"Hi! Caller number one, you are on the air."

A deep nasally voice sounded through her headset. "Uh hey, big fan here. I was wondering if you could play a song for a special lady friend of mine?"

He seemed normal? Maybe her prank caller was busy tonight.

"Sure can. What's your name?"

"The names Alonzo Clutterbutt."

Or maybe not.

"And what is your friends name?" She asked dryly.

"Uh....Ashley.....San......Diego."

Amy rolled her eyes and was about to cut him off when her boss motioned to keep him on. With a heavy sigh she played along.

"And what song would you like me to play for "Ashley" tonight?"

"I was wondering if you could play the theme from "Die Hard 2?" The seriousness in his voice made the request all the more absurd. At least he wasn't asking for more High school musical songs.

"Sorry Al, you are out of luck. As I've _frequently_ told my callers, we don't play movie soundtracks. Now, how about I pick one of my favorite songs for _you_?" She clicked  <END CALL>  just as he was saying "Dj it u..."

' _You're so vain'_ started up as Amy took another drink of coffee. It was gonna be a long night.

A couple more songs in and another call came through. "Good evening, who am I talking with tonight?" Amy crossed her fingers for a normal person.

"I'd like to order an extra large meat supreme pizza."

<END CALL>

 

"Caller number two, what can I do for you tonight?"

Thankfully, the rest of Amy's night went undisturbed.

 


	2. Chapter 2

Lately the calls have been..... _different_.

It's still the same goofy idiot with insane requests but....(and Amy tries to blame it on the lack of sleep, or the impending midterms, or the position of Jupiter. Something) but there has been a lot more flirting between the two of them. Nothing too obvious. She hopes. He had started using a more consistent voice too. Still fake, she can tell. And always the same name now "Johnny Pineapples".

Kylie says she is a little obsessed with this guy. Amy says Kylie is obsessed with Amy's lack of love life. Either way, somehow she convinces her to ask him out next time he calls.

"On air?!? Live?!?"

"No dumbass, just switch over to a song and ask him off air. Though, I'm sure he'd say yes and your listeners would absolutely love it! Then you will definitely find out who he is."

So, Amy decides to do it. Only to satisfy her curiosity, of course. She writes down exactly what she wants to say and practices in between classes. Meticulously prepping for the next time he calls.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

A few days later she stops in at the local coffee shop on her way to the campus studio.

Too caught up in her art history notes to notice the customer directly behind her, she turned sharply and ran smack into a solid body.

"Woah! Hot coffee!!"

Both Amy and the guy in front of her were spattered with the contents of her now empty cup.

"Oh no! I am so, so sorry! Are you okay?" He shook some of the scalding liquid off of his sweatshirt and smiled. He was _very_ cute.

"Don't worry about it. I've been in more awkward situations then this before. None are coming to mind at the moment. But....." He reached over and grabbed some napkins, passing half of them to her as he dabbed his leather jacket.

Amy mournfully looked over her now soggy notebook.

"This is such a mess! I'm sorry I've never done this before!"

He looked like he was about to say something but then changed his mind at the last second. He stuck out his sticky, coffee covered hand instead. "I'm Jake, by the way."

"Amy Santiago." She firmly shook his hand despite the mess.

His whole face lit up as she spoke. Like he has just discovered the missing link to life's greatest mystery. She doesn't know that he knows who she is. Of course, anyone who listens to WBNY would recognize her voice. But Amy was not exactly thinking straight.

"Well, I've just had a brilliant idea to save your squishy notes. C'mon."

He led her over to a table in the back where a girl in leotard and NYU jacket was amazingly texting on her phone and typing on her laptop at the same time.

"Hey, Gina, can I borrow your hair dryer? Promise it's not for anything weird this time. "

Without a single glance from her phone, she pulled a neon pink blowdryer from her bag under the table. Confusion showed heavily on Amy's face.

"Thanks. Be right back, boo." Jake pulled Amy into the men's room ignoring her disgust. Together they worked on drying out her notes.

"You really didn't have to do this." She said over the hum of the hair dryer.

"You're right. _You_ did run into me. Here," He handed her the hair dryer and pulled his hoodie out towards her. "Blow me!"

Amy narrowed her eyes at him and his disgusting joke. Instead, she cranked the heat up and pointed it at his grinning face.

"Ow! Hey, this is my only face." He flailed his arms to block the air. 

She smirked back. "Too bad, huh?" 

"Hah! Noice burn. Get it? Burn?"

"Don't quit your day job."

Jake mocked laughed then stole the dryer from her hands. She tried not to comment on how wrinkled the pages were. She would just iron them out later, anyway.

"Sweet, all done. Who is.....Cary-bagio?" The ink was smudged into blue and red highlighted blobs.

"Caravaggio, art history."

"Hmm. Hey, don't we take a class together?"  Jake was trying to act like he didn't already know exactly who she was. The dorky hot girl in his Criminal Justice class who also happened to be the sultry DJ he maybe had a huge crush on .

Amy looked at him, slightly puzzled. Then she remembered. "Professor Holts class?"

She recognized his jacket. Professor Holt had used it as a prop for a mock crime scene. Amy recalled rifling through it's contents to profile the owner and finding a half eaten packet of gum tape, a set of car keys with a Nakatomi keychain, two condemns, a yo-yo, and a Taylor Swift concert ticket stub. Pretty unforgettable.

" _Ah-haha!_ Knew I recognized the back of your head. Hair down kind threw me. Normally it looks like a swirly thing...." His voice trailed off

They stood awkwardly silent for a few moments. He toyed with his hoodie string nervously while she absentmindedly adjusted her papers.

Jake coughed. "So, uh, would you maybe like to...."

The door swung open and a rumpled student started relieving himself at the urinal. Amy and Jake both sharply turned away.

"O-Kay. We should go." She used her notebook as a blinder.

"Yup!" He agreed.

They walked together back to the entrance of the mostly empty shop. Only bumping into each other once as they both try to hurry out the bathroom door.

"So, anyway..."

Amy glanced down at her insanely large wristwatch just as he spoke. "Oh shoot! I'm running late. Really sorry about the coffee. Tell your girlfriend thanks for the hairdryer." With that she rushed out the door.

From across the tables Gina called out to him. "Wasn't that the lam-o Dj you prank call? My sources say she totally has the hots for you."

Jake whipped his head around so fast he almost fell over. "Wha? Really? You think so? Not that I care. She's _totally_ not my type. Or anything......How do you know?"

"Absolutely, P'raltz. But the real question is. Does she know that you are the sad puppy that's harassing her radio station?"

Jake's chin sunk down to his chest. "Uh....no. And It's not harassing. Last week she said she'd be looking forward to my calls. Besides, I think you're the one with the restraining order?"

"I agree one hundred percent with Channing Tatum's wise choice. I cannot control myself. But it's so not cool to be lying to her if you expect to have a real chance to hook up with her."

He sputtered for a bit. Partially speechless on being called out on his feelings and surprised at his friends advice.

"Just don't be a creep. No more than you already are, anyway."

Jake placed his hand over his heart. "Ouch! Uncalled for. But you're right. I'll tell her. And.....I will ask her out, again."

"Omg. Please, do not tell me you asked her out in the men's crap room? Oh Jake, have you learned nothing from me?" Gina clucked her tongue at him in disgrace. 

"No, I didn't." He said defensively. "We got interrupted by very forceful pee-er before I could ask her. Can you believe it's the _same_ girl from CJ class? That's what I'm calling it now."

She wrinkled her nose at him. "Your dreamy-emoji-face-with-blushing-cheeks is kinda grossing me out, bae."

He placed his hands down down on the table and leaned forward. "Gina, this is a bit unfair of me to ask but....can I borrow your phone?" 


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait.  
>  As my title says, unfortunately this isn't my day job.   
> But.......HOLY MOLY!!! All the comments are the nicest thing EVER. Seriously, they're amazingz. :D  
> Maybe it won't be quite so long in between next time.

Despite her mild anxiety over running late, not having her late night caffeine fix, and possibly asking a guy out for only the second time in her life (junior high shouldn’t count), Amy had a good feeling about tonight. She skimmed over the list of topics for the night then re-read her “speech”.

As soon as she was on the air she became a different person. Her confidence had plummeted thanks the joys of high school and although college had been a chance to make new impressions and friends, (which she had checked off her list successfully) old habits die hard. No matter where she was or how hard she tried, she seemed to alienate herself from her peers. The amount of people that genuinely liked her compared to those that seemed to just tolerate her existence was quite a substantial difference.

But when the sun went down on Tuesdays and Fridays she could forget everything and reinvent herself. She was no longer _"Amy Santiago, appropriate A+ overachiever"_  but _"Amy Santiago, late night radio host with a mysterious past and an appreciation for fine soups._ "

At least that's what someone said in the comments section of the studio website.    

She knew that few students actually tuned into the station (up until recently, anyway). But it was always playing in the cafeteria and coffee shop. There was something calming about talking to no one in particular about simple things like the weather, sports news, and school announcements.

Her roommate had noted that even her voice was different. Deeper, smoother, and more relaxed. Amy was sure it was probably just the mic.

“99.1 WBNY campus radio. Welcome, students and staff. On the way we’ve got some Corinne Bailey Rae, Norah Jones, and a little Jason Mraz to sweeten up your evening. Right now, here is one of my favorites from The Carpenters”

* * *

 

“Out of the goodness of my overgenerous heart, I will let you borrow Stacie. But for the love of Dance Moms, you have _got_ to stop shaking the table, Jake.”

Jake stilled his bouncing leg and opted to impatiently pace in front of their table. “Sorry, I’m just……sugar high….” He trailed off. His pathetic, though usually true, excuse didn’t fool her. Gina was very good at reading people. Or so her psychic said.

“It’s normal to be nervous, Jake-n-bake. But she just said she _likes_ The Carpenters. So obviously this girl has low standards.”

“Pff! Me, nervous? No way.” He looked at the clock above the counter for the hundredth time and whined. “Why is this taking so long?”

> _“In the next few minutes I’ll be taking callers……”_

Jake almost tripped as he ran back over to Gina. She made him take a seat and then reverently handed over her phone. He punched the number in by memory and waited.

> _“….Or... I will answer some now. Hi, caller, you’re on live.”_

“Uh…..” Jake froze with his mouth hanging open.

> _“Hello? Is this Johnny?”_

Gina kicked him under the table after the silence became painful.

“Ouch! Um…..this is Kermit the frog here. I was wondering what your opinion on the color green is?” Jake cringed as he spoke.

> _“Oh.”_

Amy sounded disappointed.

> _“Okay, I…..like the color green? Is there anything else you'd like to add?”_

_< Click>_

“What the Eddie Fung was that?!” Gina flicked him on the side of his head and stretched out her hand for her phone.

“Again, ouch! I don’t know......I panicked. I was gonna ask her out, but then I thought maybe I should tell her first. Then I also thought, what if she doesn’t _want_ to go out? Also, you know not to use that name so freely.”

“It was completely warranted. So, what are you going to do now? I can’t be seen with anyone who’s depressed.”

Jake slunk down in his chair with defeat. “I don’t know.”

“Why not, oh I don’t know, text her? I can get her cell number for you. Cassandra’s taking an engineering course with Rachel who’s dating a guy’s brother who is in Amy’s politics club.”

“Thanks, but I think I’ll just wait until I see her in Holt’s class Monday.”

“Suit yourself, Kermit.”


End file.
